Putin; A Change or the Continuity in Russian Foreign Policy in the New Era

Putin’s policies have had significant impact on Russian foreign policy after the Cold War. Despite the fact that Putin sought for increasing Russia’s power to the same level as the Cold War, however; he was aware that the nature of the international system has undergone serious changes. Therefore, some specific factors including close collaboration with the United States, an energy-oriented foreign policy and a realistic approach were taken in to consideration in Russia’s foreign policy. After taking power and by giving a new definition on Russian national interests and adopting new policies in different poliotico-econimic, military and security areas, Putin tried to redefine Russia’s stance in the international system. Therefore, the best option for Russia was avoiding any competition and trying to allocate national sources and facilities for developments and economic reconstruction and taking an optimum not ideal share in international economy in various areas including energy, world trade and modern technologies. Close collaboration with the United States after 11 September 2001 could be regarded as the most realistic approach taken by Putin in Russian foreign policy. Putin’s return to power in 2012 could create a new trend in Russia’s foreign policy. In this article, after taking a brief review on Putin’s first presidential term, we will try to examine the prospects of Russia’s foreign policy in Putin’s new era to see whether or not there will be a change or continuity in the upcoming years.